Last week a secret project I’ve been working on for quite some time finally came to fruition. I’ve been teasing it as an “Easter Egg” surprise inside of Awakening, and at last, I am able to reveal what it is. So, what does a studio recording have to do with an epic fantasy novel?

One of the main reasons I love epic fantasy is the world building that goes into a good story. The more background I am presented with, the closer to that world I feel. It’s not surprising then, that I enjoy adding all the extra bits to my own world and stories. Awakening is no exception.

Within Book One of The Stone Key Chronicles, you’ll find riddles, poems, and ancient texts that go down all the fun rabbit holes an intriguing epic fantasy has. I know there are some fantasy books out there where some of those items tend to push readers away due to their length or older style of writing. However, I also know those same items are what draw life-long fans to the books. Thus, when writing Awakening, I made sure that my own book had a happy medium between the two so that a wider audience can enjoy it.

While writing, however, I went down a bit of an unexpected path and found myself doing something I’d never done before. I wrote a pub song. I was completely new to the art, but once I started, the words kept flowing and I couldn’t stop. As a matter of fact, I enjoyed it so much, I unpacked my dusty guitar and wrote chords to accompany the lyrics! When I told my husband about the unexpected song that popped into my head, he suggested something that truly took me by surprise. Why not record it at a music studio?

Thus, the “Easter Egg” surprise idea was born! This past week, we invited friends and family to be our “pub patrons” and participate in the pub song recording. The day was a huge success! My idea was to make the recording sound like the reader walked straight into The Tipsy Tonga, a particular pub of note within Awakening, and enjoy a round of the song as if they were sitting right in front of the bard along with the rest of the patrons.

When the book is published this winter, readers will find a unique QR code linking them to the recording. It’s a bit of a wild idea, and I don’t know of any other epic fantasy writers out there that have done anything like it. Sometimes stories lead their authors down paths they hadn’t planned, and in this instance, I’m sure glad I listened to my inner creative voice. My deepest hope is that readers will enjoy listening to the song as much as I enjoyed writing and recording it!

And, just in case you’re curious, a behind the scenes video of the pub song recording is in the works and will be released this fall.